Hold On!

“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? -Psalm 27:1 (KJV)

Sometimes life is a struggle

With twists and turns so blind.

How can I hope to hold on,

Assurances to find?

Each day a step toward victory

In this way we walk and run;

Each morning’s dawn a promise

With the rays of brilliant sun.

A Hand reaches out to touch me,

God’s Hand with mighty strength;

He knows already my life and death,

Their depth, their height, their length.

“Fear not,” He whispers warmly

Whatever turn I take;

He knows my mind and holds my hand

In struggles that I make.

Even pain will not oppress me,

Nor the darkness override;

His Hand is ever upon me

To sustain me and to guide.

Behold! What a gift life is,

Although beset at times with doubt;

God is my Guide and Anchor,

He’s prepared my entire route!

Thanks be to God for promises,

For His presence and His power,

My ever-present Guide and Stay

Throughout each earthly hour.

 

-Ethelene Dyer Jones 09.17.2017.

The poem was composed December 7, 2011, when my husband, the Rev. Grover D. Jones, was near death after having had debilitating Alzheimer’s for 18 years. I knew God would see me through the remainder of his days, as He had since his diagnosis 17 years previously. The doctors/nurses who attended him stated that they had not known a case of Alzheimer’s when the patient lived as long as he did with the disease.. He died peacefully and quietly on January 26, 2011 at 1:26 a. m. in Georgia War Veterans’ Home, Milledgeville. I looked after him 14 of the 18 years at home, and visited him almost every day the 4 years he was in Veterans’ Home, except for the days/weeks when I myself was in the hospital, as for five bypasses heart surgery (August 30, 2007) and another major surgery for another ailment in 2009. God taught me, indeed, to “Hold On!” to His power and His Hand. I claimed for my verse during Grover’s long illness and during the many hospitalizations I myself have had for serious ailments since 1999, this verse from Psalm 118:17. I have also shared the verse many times with others who deal with serious health and other challenges. That verse reads: “I shall not die but live, and declare the works of the Lord.” Each time I have come back from a near-death experience, I have rejoiced that God answered my prayer as I prayed Psalm 118:17. “ God’s not finished with me yet!” Amen!

Enjoying Spiritual Blessings in Christ Jesus

“Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God. To the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him in love, he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight, making known to us the mystery of his will according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ, as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.” -Ephesians 1:1-10.

In his letter to the church at Ephesus, Paul wrote a long greeting, a sincere prayer for them in their faith and work, and praise that God had chosen them “from before the foundation of the world” to be “holy, blameless before Him in love.” The Lord had predestined all believers “for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of His glorious grace, with which He has blessed us in the Beloved.” What a marvelous heritage!

Today, the church of which I am a member, First Baptist Church, Milledgeville, observes “Heritage Day.” We consider the long history of a church holding forth the Word of Life on the same location, tracing our history at Liberty Street since 1811 (206 years). And, before it was named Milledgeville Baptist Church and relocated at Liberty Street, there was Mt. Zion Baptist Church (founded in 1806), whose members became the nucleus of the membership of the church founded in 1811. Whether our present church counts our years of existence as 206 (from 1811) or 211 (from 1806), we celebrate a long history of faithfully holding forth the Word of Life in this town. We rejoice in the history of faithfulness of saints who served before us. We read of their work and service in our church history and records that have been saved for us to enjoy. But we realize as we look back on history, that the Lord has commissioned us to serve in our age, to share our blessings of hope, joy and peace in the Lord Jesus Christ. We have a calling.

A Heritage Day celebration is for looking back at God’s faithfulness to the church for more than two centuries. It is a time to recognize that “through the richness of the Lord’s grace” as Paul wrote to the Church at Ephesus, “we have redemption through His blood, forgiveness of our trespasses according to the richness of His grace which He lavished upon us.” And furthermore, in our day, as with those who were faithful in the past, we too must remain faithful, and share the good news of redemption so that people will still accept Jesus as Savior and Lord and continue to hold forth the Word of Life for this generation and the next. The call to the faithful is the same, yesterday and today and forever. Yes. The Lord certainly “lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight, making known to us His will according to His purpose, which He set forth in Christ, as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Him, in heaven and things on earth.” And this we remember, on Heritage Day, and rejoice. We enjoy our blessings, and accept our responsibility to pass the faith on to others. How wonderful our heritage; how awesome our responsibility! Lord, let us be found faithful! -Ethelene Dyer Jones 09.10.2017